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Ed Markey is sworn in as Massachusetts' newest U.S. Senator

Senate Markey_Scho.jpg

Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass., and a veteran of congressional politics, raises his hand to repeat the oath for Vice President Joe Biden in the Old Senate Chamber at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 16, 2013, following his official ceremony earlier in the Senate Chamber. He is joined by his wife, Dr. Susan J. Blumenthal, center. Markey won a special election last month to fill the seat vacated by John Kerry, who was named secretary of State. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Democrat Edward Markey was sworn in as the junior U.S. Senator from Massachusetts on Tuesday morning.

Vice President Joseph Biden administered the oath of office to Markey just after 10 a.m. on the floor of the U.S. Senate. Massachusetts' senior senator, Democrat Elizabeth Warren, and interim Massachusetts Sen. William "Mo" Cowan, also a Democrat, were by his side.

The official swearing-in was followed by a ceremonial swearing-in in the Old Senate Chamber.

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, a Democrat, attended.

Markey enters the Senate at a time of transition for Massachusetts’ senatorial delegation. Democrat Edward Kennedy spent nearly 47 years in the Senate before his death in 2009, and Democrat John Kerry was a senator for 28 years. Now, the state has two rookie senators, with Warren becoming the senior senator just weeks after she took office in January.

Markey took his place in the nation’s most elite political body after spending 36 years, eight months and 14 days in the U.S. House.

Louis Bevilacqua, a New England-based Democratic political strategist, said Massachusetts is lucky to have someone with Markey’s experience entering the Senate. Markey has served in the House since 1976. He talks frequently about his modest family background, as the son of a milkman and the first in his family to attend college. “He’s a junior senator in that he hasn’t been on the longest, but he is the senior senator in the sense of worldview and experience, and that’s something you need, especially for the Senate and especially to advance Massachusetts,” Bevilacqua said.

Politico reported last week that Markey was seeking a spot on the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat, told Politico he thinks Markey will be appointed to that committee. A committee spokesman would not confirm that, saying committee appointments are up to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Among other areas, the Commerce Committee covers communications policy, which was Markey’s expertise in the U.S. House. Kerry held a seat on the Commerce Committee, and Cowan has remained on the committee, so there is a spot available for Markey.

In the U.S. House, Markey has been a reliable progressive vote for the Democratic Party. He has focused particularly on energy and telecommunications issues.

A special election to replace Markey in the U.S. House will be held Dec. 10, with the primary on Oct. 15.

So far, five Democrats have announced their intentions to seek Markey’s seat: State Senators William Brownsberger of Belmont, Katherine Clark of Melrose and Karen Spilka of Ashland; State Rep. Carl Sciortino of Medford; and Middlesex County Sheriff Peter Koutoujian. Republican attorney Frank Addivinola is also running.